Meditating On Creativity

If you're doubtful of the effects meditating can have on your creativity, you're missing out on an incredible tool to add to your artistic arsenal. I began meditating earlier this year (after many failed attempts for years prior) when I began to realize that one of my biggest obstacles to my art was that I was constantly in a state of worry about my art. Worrying about what to do, how to get better, where I'll find work, how I'm going to get it all done, etc... actually made me feel as though I was being proactive. Worry validated my life as an artist. If I didn't worry about being an artist, then that must mean that I didn't care about it. The problem is that worry is the main ingredient for procrastination. It's a wonderful distraction. You wouldn't think just by looking at the volumes of work I put out over the years, or the fact that I never miss a deadline, that I ever procrastinated or worried, but I did. And I got to a point where I realized I don't want live my life this way any more. I knew that for me, meditation was the answer.

On October 10th I attended a 12 hour meditation retreat. There was a group of about 200 people. Over the course of the day, we were taught some simple but useful and applicable meditations and I've been doing them every day since. In all my past efforts to learn to meditate through books, audio, web site guru's, etc...nothing really ever worked for me. Maybe I wasn't ready. But I sure was ready on October 10th. I was fully committed to the idea that I would change this ridiculous, silly habit of worry. The meditations I learned clicked for me and I've been doing them every day since. So here's what I've noticed about how meditating for 1/2 an hour every day has affected my art:

• I have more time now to do my art! I always thought I needed 7 or 8 hours of sleep each night and wouldn't be able to function if I didn't get exactly that. After almost a month of meditation, I have begun to wake up after only 6 hours, feeling more awake and refreshed than ever before. Getting up earlier means a more time for making art!

• The creative floodgates have opened! It's like a pinata has burst open and all the candies and treats and delights are just busting out! Thankfully no one had to knock me on the noggin with a stick to make that happen. I have so many idea's that I can hardly keep up. And to take it a step further, I now act on as many as I can in a given day. No procrastinations, no excuses, no worry. My studio is a total mess, but even that doesn't bother me anymore.

• Meditation keeps me centered, focused. I don't find myself worrying about the bills, or when I have to get to this appointment or that appointment, or what needs to fixed in the house, etc... This makes me available to make more art!

• I've stopped judging my art. I spent just about every day of my life finding something to not like about what I've just drawn or painted or whatever and beating myself up over it. In this one month of meditation, I noticed that if I don't like the way a composition looks, or if something isn't working, the color isn't just right, that's ok. What a relief to just to be able to say "That's ok" and begin again. Or, "that's ok" and leave it the way it is. "Move along," the storm trooper said to Obi Wan. Move along, indeed.

I will continue to blog about my observations about how meditation is affecting my art in the coming weeks and months. Is meditation a part of your life? If so, how did it improve your creativity? Even if you've never meditated but have an interest in it, please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what your thoughts about it.

Thank you:)
-Cyn